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The Kel-Morian Combine (KMC) is a terran business conglomerate that serves as the government of Moria and its colonies, and the center of its various mining guilds. It is one of the three major terran nations of the Koprulu sector.

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The Kel-Morian Combine was formed when the Morian Mining Coalition and the Kelanis Shipping Guild merged out of fear that the Terran Confederacy might attempt to move in and use its military strength to regulate their lucrative operations. This shady, corrupt corporate partnership pledged military aid to any mining guild that was threatened by Confederate policy.[1][2] Led by General Mah Sakai, the two groups also banded together in order to maximize their ability to drain the resources from the numerous worlds within the Koprulu sector.[1] The line between corporation and government vanished.[2]

The KMC faced and defeated a rebellion in the form of the Kel-Morian Mining Revolts, and the KMC deployed a number of goliath combat walkers, showcasing how effective even a small number of the mechs could be in urban combat.[1]

Tensions heated up as the Confederacy continually stole Kel-Morian mining operations from locations such as the Paladino Belt and the world of Sonyan, actions internally justified that the Combine was composed of pirates and other criminals.[3] The Combine planned on war with the Confederacy so it could control all the scarce resources.[4] The Combine became increasingly antagonistic towards the Confederacy over its actions.[3]

"Tonight is the night to remember not only the battle of Hegeron, but the evil that dwells in the high rise towers of Tarsonis, where members of the Old Families grow rich of those who slave in their factories. Like Kel-Morian soldiers everywhere, the rippers will never forget that the workers have a right to a fair wage, to basic social services, and to free elections!"

During the war, Kel-Morian soldiers, known as rippers, continually made raids on Confederate bases, often more interested in plunder than in military victory.[4]Victor Kachinsky led a guerrilla squad in surgical strikes against the Confederacy on Artesia Prime, using spider mines to soften up Confederate forces before an ambush.[9]

The KMC became the largest non-Confederate organization operating within terran space. Equipped with thousands of armed troops and hardware, the KMC strictly enforced its myriad territorial operations. It was rumored that the KMC actually supplied the Confederacy with fuels and resources. So great was their political influence, the Confederate forces were banned from prosecuting the KMC for any potentially criminal action.[1] Nonetheless, the Combine was effectively a shadow of what it once was; it was strength that even over a decade later, they were not able to regain.[11]

During the Brood War, the KMC continued to operate while the United Earth Directorate dominated the sector, which Fenix found a surprising example of terran greed.[15] The zerg under Sarah Kerrigan weakened some of Moria's defenses and destroyed a number of military and manufacturing facilities as they pilfered ten thousand minerals before departing.[2][16]

"It was always the damned KMs. Here they were in the middle of one of humanity's darkest hours, with two alien menaces wreaking havoc on the Koprulu sector, and the Kel-Morians were busy threatening the Dominion's mining interests."

The Combine achieved independence from the Dominion and competed with it for influence.[18] In the years which followed the end of the Brood War, the KMC focused on building up its commercial empire. Although the rise of the Dominion caused concern among the Combine's leaders over the safety of their far-flung mining operations, they remained intent on claiming more worlds for plunder.[2]

The Combine frequently came into economic conflict with the Dominion, sabotaging their mining operations with nuclear weapons. Kel-Morian spies were known to arm themselves with nuclear detonators, blowing themselves up if captured.[19] The Combine valued alliance with opponents of the Terran Dominion, and struck an alliance of sorts with Jim Raynor c. 2502. Its leaders spent much time discussing matters with him. Raynor did not remain, however. Afterward the Combine continued to cover for Raynor.[20] Conflict with the zerg was viewed as another inevitability.[21]

Despite its sparring with the Dominion, the Combine was capable of operating with it to an extent. Both Dominion and Kel-Morian citizens dwelt on Meteor Station (albeit with a degree of tension)[22] and both sides cooperated against the Players' Club, a pirate band which attacked both sides.[23]

The KMC staked a claim to mining and salvage rights over the Sara system shortly after its prospectors found that minerals on Mar Sara had acquired unique properties due to the protossbombardment. When the Dominion established several outposts in the system, the KMC claimed that the outposts were established at their invitation due to security issues with piracy and mining camp revolts.[24] Tensions still existed, the reasons including the Dominion shutting down the Combine's salvaging of the Jacobs Installation, the reasons having been put under Level Black censoring.[25] Things came to a head in 2504, when the Dominion annexed the planet.[26]

KMC officials were bribed by Tavish Kerr into hefting exorbitant taxes on Rory Swann's mining operation on Meinhoff. When Swann declared his operation's independence, the KMC responded by sending a military contingent to seize all of his assets. They crushed the revolt.[27]

After Victor Kachinsky was killed by Dominion ghosts in an attempt by EmperorArcturus Mengsk to "simplify" relations, the Combine's response was angry but reserved, as it was in no place to mount any sort of military retaliation. Victor's uncle, Kelanis Guildmaster Abraham Kachinsky, made a speech about working toward peace with the Dominion.[9]

Protoss forces engaged Combine and Dominion forces on Moria at Remote Mining Station Four. Though it cost both the Dominion and Combine a great number of soldiers, the protoss were eventually pushed back from the outpost.[33]

As events moved forward, the Combine began to play a greater role in Sector affairs.[11] Following the war, the Combine was not viewed as a "viable enemy" to the Dominion and was barely holding together.[34]

This article or section contains information derived from Co-op Missions, and should not be considered part of the official StarCraft storyline.

During the End War, a Kel-Morian Combine mining colony, under the command of Guildmaster Deborah Greene, came under attack by Amon's Forces and an army of his infested terrans. Initial attack waves were led by a blightbringer, and the Umojan Protectorateeradicators sent to protect the colony malfunctioned. Greene called upon allied commanders to aid in the evacuation of the colony. The commanders successfully defended the evacuation transports as they escaped the planet, holding back both the infested, the hybrid and Amon's forces.[38]

Years after the End War, the Terran Dominion reformed under Emperor Valerian Mengsk and the Kel-Morian Combine were undergoing new trade negotiations, which looked to being close to approved.[39] KMC scavengers would make a living off of derelicts from the wars, and would on rare occasion illegally operate in Terran Dominion space.[40]

The Kel-Morian Combine is split into guilds. Each guild's leader is democratically elected, but once in that position, they are difficult to dislodge. The Terran Confederacy claimed the Combine's guild leaders were chosen through heredity, and family retainership was an acknowledged part of life. Each member of Kel-Morian society belongs to an occupational guild.[4]

During the Guild Wars, the Combine's military was organized along corporate lines. Soldiers such as rippers and outriders were used, though were effectively irregulars and were more poorly equipped than their Confederate counterparts. Like the soldiers' armor, Combine vehicles were effectively scrapped together from various sources and the Kelanis Shipping Guild functioned as an irregular, albeit effective, naval force. As per tradition stemming back to the days of Moria's first mining guilds, guild affiliation and specialization were inscribed on uniforms. The KMC deployed a specialized infantry named the Guild Guards during the conflict, which specialized in close quarter combat.

By the Great War, the Combine's militia color was green.[1] By the Brood War, its military was operating under more conventional lines.[16] While weaker than the Dominion, the Combine is stronger militarily than the Umojan Protectorate, though is still not the powerhouse it used to be in the Guild Wars.[11] They employ a well equipped mercenary force,[41] and have been known to hire pirate crews to acquire resources.[35]

The Combine has its own Ghost Program.[42] However, this has been put on hold since the disastrous Guild Wars.[43]

"Locusts! That's what those infernal Kel-Morian Combine mining teams are! You think you have a good claim all to yourself, but then the Combine comes to ravage everything in sight right from under your nose. They'll leave me with nothing after they're done. Well I'm not going to take it anymore, and I've got just the thing for them! I'll make this a hot spot they'll never forget! I'll show them!"

The establishment date of the Kel-Morian Combine is disputed. According to miscellaneous images extracted from StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty, the Combine was established in 2376.[44] This date contradicts with the one provided in the timeline of StarCraft II: Heaven's Devils, which lists the Combine's founding as being in 2485.[45] However, that timestamp is contradicted by I, Mengsk. which doesn't state when the Combine was founded, but has it active as early as 2478.[3]